“Arctic Feedbacks” is a middle/high school earth science unit focused on weather and climate as it relates to Earth’s system. The unit is centered around an anchoring phenomena known as Arctic amplification and consists of ten unique lessons, each tied to the NGSS Earth’s systems standards. Each lesson provides students with evidence they will use to explain anchoring phenomena in a final descriptive model and written explanation.

In this interactive online activity, you will explore the Canadian Arctic, the history of the Northwest Passage and the importance of maintaining a strong Canadian presence in the northern region.

Questions:

1. Identify four unique characteristics of the Canadian Arctic region.
2. Identify contributions made by some of the Arctic explorers who searched for the Northwest Passage.
3. To what extent did the Inuit culture in the Canadian Arctic help with the discovery of one of Franklin's lost ships?
4. What impact would climate change and the opening of the Northwest Passage have on the Inuit people socially, environmentally, and economically?
5. How might the opening of the Northwest Passage affect Canada’s claim to Arctic sovereignty and its relationship with other countries?
6. What are some of the ways Canada is getting involved in protecting the Arctic?

Students explore the biosphere and its associated environments and ecosystems in the context of creating a model ecosystem, learning along the way about the animals and resources. Students investigate different types of ecosystems, learn new vocabulary, and consider why a solid understanding of one's environment and the interdependence of an ecosystem can inform the choices we make and the way we engineer our communities. This lesson is part of a series of six lessons in which students use their growing understanding of various environments and the engineering design process, to design and create their own model biodome ecosystems.

Students will explore time series plots and raw data to understand the role of sea surface temperature increases on arctic ice melt. This is part three of a four-part activity on polar science. The activity builds on the knowledge gained in Using Data and Images to Understand Albedo (part 2). Extension activities examining air and sea surface temperature in relation to changing Earth albedo are included. Information is provided on data access using the NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory Web site. This activity is one of several learning activities connected with the 2007 GLOBE Earth system poster.

How would a Polar Bear do if you put it in the desert? Not well. But why? Why can't anything live anywhere? Well, this has to do with Habitats and how animals (including humans) are suited for living in one place over another. In this episode, Sabrina talks about how these Habitats form Food Webs and how those Food Webs help us understand a lot about the world.

Students brainstorm and discuss the different types of materials used to build houses in various climates. They build small models of houses and test them in different climates.

How could the best-equipped scientific mission from the world’s most technically advanced industrial country – and Franklin’s third trip to the Arctic – flounder? The Inuit, many of whom were in the immediate vicinity of Franklin’s ill-fated voyage at the time, thrived in that same Arctic environment, and had done so for thousand of years. The Franklin Mystery: Life and Death in the Arctic will provide you with a window on Inuit life, allowing you to explore not only the environments in which the members of the Franklin expedition died, but how and why Inuit have been able to live there successfully for so long. The Franklin Mystery: Life and Death in the Arctic invites you to explore the historical evidence about those tragic events, and come to your own conclusions about what happened, and why.

This free, online article, developed for elementary teachers, describes a Kindergarten polar science, standards aligned, unit centered on The Polar Express developing literacy, math, and science skills.

In this learning activity, students compare changes in insolation with changes in surface temperature in the polar regions using scientific visualizations of global data sets. Links to readings related to the shrinking ice cap and albedo are included. This is part 1 of a four-part activity on polar science. Extension activities examining air and sea surface temperature in relation to changing Earth albedo are included. This activity is one of several learning activities connected with the 2007 GLOBE Earth system poster.